Fifth Circuit Ruling May Undermine OSHA Incident-Reporting Rules
A Fifth Circuit decision vacating OSHA's mental-illness recording rule provides a new roadmap for employers to challenge the statutory authority behind the agency's immediate incident-reporting requirements.
In a significant development for employers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has vacated an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) rule that required the recording of work-related mental illnesses. The July 2026 decision in Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission concluded that the agency exceeded its statutory authority under the OSH Act.
Applying the Supreme Court's recent Loper Bright framework, which directs courts to determine the "best reading" of a statute rather than defer to a "plausible" agency interpretation, the court found the Act's reference to "illnesses" did not extend to mental conditions. This reasoning creates a potential new avenue to challenge other OSHA regulations. Specifically, the analysis suggests OSHA's rule requiring immediate reporting of fatalities and serious injuries may be vulnerable because the OSH Act's text only authorizes "periodic reports." While the incident-reporting rule remains enforceable today, employers facing citations may now have a credible, though untested, argument that the agency lacks the statutory authority to demand immediate, event-driven notification. Counsel should monitor for further litigation and consider preserving this argument when defending against reporting-violation citations.